Turn a Tiny Kitchen into a Cozy Eat-In Kitchen

When your kitchen is too cramped for a traditional set of dining table and chairs, consider banquette seating.

The kitchen is often the hub of your home, where family and friends gather to gossip and create culinary delights. When you don't have a dining room, the kitchen also doubles as a place to share meals, which can be difficult when yours is particularly tiny. Luckily, there are various strategies that help turn even the tiniest kitchens into a cozy eat-in kitchen that can even enhance your kitchen decor.

Build a Breakfast Nook

Even tiny kitchens often have a small nook that would make a perfect eating area. For example, corners are frequently wasted space you can commandeer for a cozy nook with an L-shaped, built-in bench. If you have a large window in your kitchen, add a window seat and build around it for a sunny, cheerful nook. Accompany your window seating with a bistro set that matches your kitchen decor or choose two booths facing each other and a wall-mounted table to avoid blocking the view. When using booths, keep your nook from having a restaurant-like look by choosing brightly colored cushions or pillows to give the space personality. You can also opt to use benches that mimic your cabinetry, so they blend well with your kitchen decor.

Consider Banquette Seating

When your kitchen is too cramped for a traditional set of dining table and chairs, consider banquette seating. Banquettes are popular choices for eat-in kitchens and utilize benches or booths for seating and a cozy way to dine. Built-in booths work well when you want something custom-designed to fit your space precisely. However, when you're on a tight budget, store-bought dining benches pushed up against the walls also provide the same function. Both can also pull double-duty when they have lift-up tops or drawers you can use for additional storage space. Use this bonus storage space for large, infrequently-used kitchen items that take up too much room in your tiny kitchen.

Add a pedestal or trestle table to make it easier to slide along the booth without maneuvering around the legs of a standard dining table. Your table could be round, oval, square or rectangular, depending on your space, with a material that complements your kitchen's overall design. Then, supplement your banquette seating with a couple of easily moved chairs and cushions or pillows you can easily change anytime you want to update your kitchen's decor and/or style.

Try Bistro or Pub Sets

If booths aren't your idea of cozy, try a bistro or pub set. Bistro sets aren't just for your patio anymore. There are tons of styles that work great for small eat-in kitchens, including sets made of wood, metal, chrome, wicker or any combination of materials. To add more elegance, choose table tops made of glass, ceramic tile or marble.

While a regular dining table and chairs usually seats four or more, bistro sets are much more petite and are meant for only two, possibly three, people. Most bistro tables, which are also called cafe tables, are round to better utilize space. If you prefer a taller eating area, choose a pub set. These are similar, but are usually at counter-height or even taller. Best of all, bistro and pub sets are easily moved around and take up less floor space.

Use a Wall

In a super-tiny kitchen, it may be too crowded for any stand-alone set of table and chairs, no matter their size. This is when an unused wall can provide a cozy eating area. Wall-mounted drop-leaf tables fit into some of the smallest spaces, because you either prop them up or fold them down when you want to use them, then stash them flush against the wall when you don't. Add a couple of compact, foldable chairs you can store when you don't need them or hang them from hooks on the wall next to the table. To avoid clashing with your kitchen decor, choose stylish chairs that are as decorative as they are functional. If hanging chairs aren't appealing to you, consider stackable stools that are also space-saving.

Any of these strategies enable you to maximize your kitchen eating space, while minimizing its overall footprint. The strategy you choose ultimately comes down to what your kitchen can accommodate and your personal preferences and lifestyle. No matter what route you take, always make sure anything you place in your eating area doesn't hamper your kitchen's traffic flow. Nothing spoils the camaraderie of cooking and eating together more than continually tripping over chairs or wriggling around a table in the way.